AG wants to curb meth use by tightening Sudafed sale rules

Jan. 10, 2014

Marty Jackley

Written by

Meth in South Dakota

Statewide methamphetamine arrests and lab incidences have been on the rise during the past five years, according to information gathered by Attorney General Marty Jackley’s office. Here is a look at the numbers:

When manufacturing methamphetamine became as simple as throwing a few cold tablets into a two-liter bottle, mixing in common household chemicals and shaking it up, the drug-making landscape transformed almost overnight across South Dakota.

Meth makers siphoning anhydrous ammonia out of farmstead tanks and cooking large batches of their foul-smelling concoctions over open flames in the countryside started to move into town.

Using what authorities call the “one pot” method, people quickly produced smaller amounts of the highly addictive drug in their cars, homes or hotel rooms. And crime records confirmed the new and booming spread of labs — the 30 uncovered by Sioux Falls police in 2012 equaled the total number for the previous six years combined.

That proliferation is a catalyst for Attorney General Marty Jackley’s decision this winter to introduce legislation that sets up an electronic record-keeping system that will tell retailers and pharmacists in real time who is making a run on pseudoephedrine — the essential ingredient in meth that is found in Sudafed, Claritin-D and other over-the-counter cold medications.

That system — called the National Precursor Log Exchange, or NPLEx — is now being used in 29 other states and should deter individuals from buying pseudoephedrine at one business and then going down the street to another store and purchasing more, Jackley said. State law limits the sale of the drug to two packages a visit, or about five packages in a 30-day period. The new system will post a stop-sale alert if a person is trying to buy more.

“In past years, I think the sense is that we didn’t see a lot of manufacturing here because of the complex method to make it,” Jackley said. “Now, because technology has made it easier, while we’re not seeing greater amounts of it produced here, we are seeing more lab incidences. We’re seeking to stop that.”

State law already requires retailers and pharmacies to send written logs of pseudoephedrine sales each month to the Division of Criminal Investigation, a burdensome record-keeping that doesn’t enable businesses to monitor in real time multiple purchases by individuals.

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The NPLEx system won’t cost businesses or taxpayers anything, Jackley insisted — it is funded by manufacturers of pseudoephedrine products and provided through the National Association of Drug Diversion Investigators.

The nationwide system for sharing information requires only a computer with an Internet connection, the attorney general said. Under his bill, retailers without that technology can opt out, though organizations such as the South Dakota Pharmacists Association wouldn’t expect to see a lot of that.

“I can’t envision very many people asking for a waiver,” executive director Sue Schaefer with the pharmacists organization said. “I think most folks have computers and will have access to ... an Internet connection.”

Her group’s big concern was protecting pharmacists who feel threatened by customers upset when the system doesn’t allow them to make a purchase.

“There is an override option in the system where, if you feel someone might hurt you, you can provide them with what they want and then can contact law enforcement after they leave,” Schaefer said.

1,130 meth arrests last year

Statewide, meth arrests have been on a steady and steep incline since 2008, rising from 162 arrests that year to 1,130 last year. Six years ago, there were six labs identified and 38 pounds of meth confiscated in South Dakota. Last year, law enforcement came across 38 labs and seized 79 pounds.

In the first eight days of this year, there were 20 meth arrests for possession in this community, Minnehaha County State’s Attorney Aaron McGowan said.

“It has gotten worse,” he said. “And I can tell you, we’ve certainly seen an uptick in more violent crimes that is chemically propelled.”

The electronic record-keeping should certainly prevent the abnormal purchase of pseudoephedrine, Jackley said. And with Iowa and Nebraska part of the 29-state system, buyers aren’t going to be able to jump across nearby borders to stock up.

But meth still will find its way into southeast South Dakota, especially because Sioux Falls is at the intersection of Interstates 90 and 29.

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Minnehaha County Sheriff Mike Milstead said 85 percent of the drug used in America comes from south of its border or along its southern border.

“This won’t make it go away,” Milstead said. “But ... probably all of the meth lab cases here are utilizing pseudoephedrine products that are bought over the counter and then used to produce methamphetamine locally. That accounts for all of our labs and a lot of meth that is feeding the habits.”

The electronic system would become one more weapon in the battle, Milstead and Jackley said, along with recent legislation that increased the maximum penalty for manufacturing meth from 10 to 15 years, and the creation of a drug court program in 2007 that provides alternative treatment for offenders who would otherwise go to prison.

Jackley said there are safeguards built into the electronic system to protect privacy under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, and to keep pharmaceutical companies who are funding the system from gaining access to information for marketing purposes.

Though buyers are required to provide identification, such as a driver’s license, and their address when they purchase these cold medicines, “there is no access to transactional data by anyone other than law enforcement and the retailers themselves,” the attorney general said.

“This is governed by the federal Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act, which has required stores to share this data with law enforcement since 2006 and limits the use of the data to law enforcement,” he said. “Therefore, NPLEx is in compliance with HIPAA.”

If approved by the Legislature and signed by the governor, Jackley expects the system to come together this year. He also expects to see the production and use of meth in this state to start going down.

“My hope is, at the end of the day when you look at lab incidences, that we’re able to greatly reduce it,” Jackley said. “You’re not making as much; you’re not using as much. The arrests and seizures should begin to decrease.”